When the calls from the debt collectors started, I was feeling really scared and had difficulty sleeping. My voice would often tremble when answering them, although this would only encourage them to call more often. However, after being chased by one company, another would take on the same account, but the amount had then almost doubled. When I asked for a breakdown of the account, they were unable to provide one, but offered me a deal to pay it off at a fraction of the original amount. I declined their offer.

After a bit of research, I realised the debt collectors buy debts for less than 10p in the pound, after the bank writes the debt off. I also found out that under the Bills of Exchange Act 1882, the debt collector is actually paying off our debt when they buy it. I also realised how debt collectors trick us into contracts with them, by asking us how much we could pay. When you agree to one pound a month, which costs more to administrate, they now have a contract with you, where none existed.

I then came across an ebook by Mary Elizabeth Croft, How I Clobbered every Cash Confiscatory Bureau. She explained that fractional reserve banking is basically fraud, as the banks do not have the money they lend us. A bank only needs a small fraction of the money it actually "lends" us, but that's not lending – it is creating money out of thin air. If a bank holds £1,000, it can create seven or eight times that amount and charge interest.

Croft suggested sending the debt collectors letters with a list of questions, which if they could not answer, would render the debt void. I could not find template letters to send these companies, so I created my own with my new found understanding. It wasn't long before I set up Getoutofdebtfree.org to share these with others in a similar situation.

Once armed with my new knowledge, my confidence returned and I started having fun with the phone calls. I would sometimes answer the phone with a list of "security" questions: "What is your full name? The name of your line manager? Direct phone numbers?" And, of course: "What is your mother's maiden name?" When answered satisfactorily, they would be informed that I do not deal with matters over the phone. I would also inform them that the conversation was being recorded for training and entertainment purposes. It was as much as I could do to stop myself giggling as the bemused caller lost his thread and started fumbling for words.

Within a year or so, my website started getting a bit of attention and in 2009, the headlines on the Guardian website read, "Debt collectors hit out at advice websites". The trade body for debt collectors had got together and decided that there were a few sites they wanted removed from the internet. Traffic to my site suddenly skyrocketed, eventually overtaking the government's own debt advice site. Getoutofdebtfree.org now offers support to thousands of people in seven countries and has a lively and supportive community forum.

Any child knows that if you put 10 marbles in a bag, you can only get 10 marbles out. No amount of searching will produce the 11th marble – it doesn't exist. But it's exactly what the banks do. They create money as necessary with a few clicks of a computer keyboard, but then charge us interest. Two things have to happen as a result of this. The money supply has to be continually and exponentially inflated and individuals, companies – and, of course, countries – default. That the economy will collapse is a mathematical certainty. Like any ponzi scheme, it has to.

We are told that default is not an option, as this would mean an end to foreign investment. However, look at what happened in Iceland. After prolonged protests, the government finally resigned, a new constitution was drawn up and the situation immediately started improving – despite serious threats from the UK and the IMF. Their economy is now doing rather nicely, mainly due to the massive burden of debt being lifted from them. Why can't we be brave like them and, get rid of our banking-sponsored government and default? Problem solved.

The mood is now changing, and people are finally waking up. The worldwide Occupy movement is beginning to ask the right questions. I have had the privilege of spending time at Occupy London at St Paul's and it feels like real change is on the horizon. Now is the time we have to be brave and make some difficult decisions, and take back our power. Our future and the future of our children depends on it.